The Brenta is an Italian

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

that runs from

Trentino Trentino (), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento (; ; ), is an Autonomous province#Italy, autonomous province of Italy in the Northern Italy, country's far north. Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the Regions of Italy, region of Tren ...

to the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

just south of the Venetian lagoon in the

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

region, in the north-east of Italy. During the Roman era, it was called Medoacus (

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

: ''Mediochos'', ''Μηδειοχος'') and near

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

it divided in two branches, Medoacus Maior (Greater Medoacus) and Medoacus Minor (Lesser Medoacus). The river changed its course in the early Middle Ages, and its former bed through Padua was occupied by the Bacchiglione. It is long and was first channelled in the 16th century when a long canal was built from the village of Stra to the Adriatic Sea, bypassing the Venetian lagoon. A branch of the Brenta, named '' Naviglio del Brenta'', was left to connect directly

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

and Padua (which was a kind of second capital of the Venice Republic). It runs through Stra, Fiesso d'Artico, Dolo, Mira, Oriago and Malcontenta to Fusina (which is part of the

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

of Venice). Starting in the 16th century, many large villas were built along the shores of the ''Naviglio del Brenta'', and this inhabited area was subsequently named '' Riviera del Brenta''. Three of these villas are open to the public: the massive baroque Villa Pisani in Stra, Villa Widmann-Foscari in Mira, and the Palladian building of Villa Foscari, also called "La Malcontenta". Villa Ferretti-Angeli in Dolo is also on the Riviera. Northwest of Padua, near the village of Piazzola sul Brenta, not far from the river, Villa Contarini is open. The Venetian aristocracy used to cruise along the canal on a type of boat known as a ''burchiello'', while cargo was carried on traditional barges known as ''burci''. In Bassano del Grappa, the river is crossed by the '' Ponte Vecchio'' ( Italian, meaning Old bridge), or ''Ponte degli Alpini'' (bridge of the Alpini), a covered bridge designed by Palladio in 1569. The bridge is pontoon-style and is built completely of wood. It was destroyed several times in its history, and was last rebuilt by the Alpini in 1948.

External links

Website of the Reclamation/Drainage Consortium for the area crossed by the northern section of Brenta riverWebsite of the Reclamation/Drainage Consortium for the area crossed by the southern section of Brenta river
{{Authority control Waterways of Italy Rivers of Italy Rivers of Trentino Rivers of the Province of Vicenza Rivers of the Province of Padua Rivers of the Metropolitan City of Venice Adriatic Italian coast basins

See also

External links